The present invention relates to a method and apparatus for handling poultry. More specifically, the invention relates to a method and apparatus that employs a portable tray to transport live chickens from one area or facility to another.
Commercial poultry farming involves the use of multiple houses where the birds are raised in a particular environment during each phase of development. For example, young chickens known as pullets are raised together in a pullet house until they reach a certain age or maturity, when they are transported to a breeder house. The task of moving the birds from one house to another consumes resources which are limited by a variety of business factors including time, labor cost, facility size, and transportation distance. The task of relocating the birds is further limited by a variety of natural and environmental factors including temperature, light, nutrition, hydration, bird maturity, and overall bird stamina.
Relocating large numbers of live poultry by hand requires many hours of manual labor and results in significant physical stress to the birds.
Using manual labor to relocate the birds is expensive and diverts worker effort and attention away from more sophisticated tasks. Using manual labor to relocate the birds further results in repeated and stressful manual handling of the birds, which can delay the onset of egg, laying. Using manual labor to relocate the birds also takes a long time because a person can only carry a limited number of birds. The slow process of manually picking up the birds from ground level and placing on the platform results in many of the birds returning to the flocks still on the ground, necessitating multiple relocations of the birds. The inherent delay caused by using manual labor can result in the birds being without food or water for up to two or three days, resulting in adverse effects upon bird health and further delaying the onset of egg laying.
In addition, the feeders in each type of hen house are different in size and shape, which requires the birds to be located on different levels relative to the feeders. For example, pan or chain feeders are used in a pullet house, whereas auger, chain or pan feeders are used in a breeder house. The pan feeder is necessary for proper development and it is designed to produce a more uniform bird. The auger feeder, however, requires locating the birds on a raised platform where they can gain access to the feed.
The breeder house also contains a row of nests where the birds lay eggs. For convenience in the gathering of eggs, the nest rows are typically located adjacent to a center aisle, with the raised platform located behind the nest rows. This rearward location of the raised platform increases the difficulty of accurately and carefully locating the birds over the nest row and onto the platform.
Thus, there is a need for a poultry relocation apparatus and method which provides a reduced amount of manual labor and minimizes stress to the birds.
There is a further need for a poultry relocation apparatus and a method for using same which provides a means for lifting the birds gently over the nest row and accurately onto a raised platform.
Stated generally, the present invention comprises a method and apparatus for relocating large numbers of live poultry.
Using a portable tray, the birds are loaded into the tray and transported to a new location. In one disclosed embodiment, this transportation is accomplished by a rolling apparatus which is self-propelled and fits between the rows of a typical breeder house.
When the birds are transported to the desired location, the tray is lifted upward and at the same time moved laterally into a convenient position by a motor. In one disclosed embodiment, this translation of the tray to its elevated and offset position is accomplished by a raising apparatus which is driven by a hydraulic cylinder. In one alternative disclosed embodiment, the tray is not lifted upward and the translation of the tray to its offset position is accomplished by a rolling apparatus which is driven by a hydraulic cylinder.
When the tray has been lifted into the elevated and offset position, a gate on the edge of the tray is opened to allow the birds to exit the tray toward the desired location. In one disclosed embodiment, the opening of the gate is accomplished by a hydraulic cylinder.
When the tray has been lifted and the gate has been opened, the tray is maneuvered for the purpose of moving the birds off the tray, through the open gate, and into the desired location. In one disclosed embodiment, a hydraulic cylinder is used to tilt the tray toward the open gate, causing the birds to slide across the floor of the tray and onto the raised platform of a typical breeder house. In one alternative embodiment, a conveyor is used to move the floor of the tray toward the open gate, moving the birds out of the tray and onto the raised platform of a typical breeder house.
According to one aspect of the invention, the portable apparatus is moved into position and a large number of birds are loaded into the tray by the operator. This method and apparatus increases the number of birds to be relocated per trip to the new location and eliminates the need for as many trips, thereby improving the carrying capacity per employee and reducing the time consumed by the entire relocation task.
In a second aspect of the invention, the loaded portable apparatus is moved to the new location where the operator controls the precise desired location of the birds. This method and apparatus eliminates the haphazard manual placement of the birds and eliminates the repeated manual handling of the birds, thereby improving the accuracy of bird placement and reducing the adverse impact of relocation on bird health.
In another aspect of the invention, the secondary frame under the tray containing the birds is lifted upward and at the same time moved laterally into an elevated and offset position above the nest row. This method and apparatus eliminates hours of manual lifting of each bird over the nest row, thereby improving the overall efficiency of the relocation task and reducing labor costs as well as the risk of injury.
In yet another aspect of the invention, a gate on the edge of the tray is opened, allowing the birds to exit the tray toward the desired location. This method and apparatus eliminates the need to manually direct the birds toward the desired location, thereby reducing bird stress and improving overall bird health.
In a further aspect of the invention, the tray is maneuvered to unload the birds off the tray, through the open gate, and into the desired location. This method and apparatus eliminates the repeated manual handling of the birds, thereby reducing the time required for unloading and improving overall bird health.
In yet another aspect of the invention, the floor of the tray is constructed of a material which is sufficiently slippery to allow the birds to slide easily when the tray is tilted at a relatively low angle. Alternatively, the floor of the tray is configured with a belt conveyor which unloads the birds without tilting the tray. This method and apparatus reduces the angle to which the tray is tilted, or eliminates the tilting altogether, thereby allowing said apparatus to be operational in a smaller environment. This method and apparatus in either embodiment eliminates the need to manually push the birds through the open gate, thereby reducing the time required for unloading and improving overall bird health.
Thus, it is an object of the present invention to provide an improved method and apparatus for relocating large numbers of live poultry.
It is another object of the present invention to provide an improved method and apparatus for relocating large numbers of live poultry wherein the procedure both reduces the time and rigor of the manual labor required and reduces the physical stress on the birds caused by repeated manual handling.
Still another object of the present invention is to provide an improved method and apparatus for relocating large numbers of live poultry wherein the procedure both reduces the time and rigor of the manual labor required and reduces the physical stress on the birds caused by repeated manual handling while also providing a reduced delay in access to food and water and a reduced delay in the onset of egg laying caused by the relocation.